A toast is in order

This week me girl, Lexi, took a big step and became a Domestic Partner to the Lovely Marjorie. Cheers to the happy couple! There were mini-top hats involved (but I can't seem to get the photo off of my phone. Grrrr). Go thing I have this super-cute snap on hand. Yeah commitment!

Hold on to your anthropological hats

I promised pictures of the wedding, so here is a much paired down re-telling of the event. It was an amazing rite to witness and well beyond what I had imagined prior to arriving. A bit of background, so that it isn't assumed this is the norm for Korean weddings -- we didn't meet anyone who had seen this kind of traditional ceremony before. It is a re-enactment of the royal wedding established during the Cho Dynasty. Still done as an act of cultural preservation, one must apply for the opportunity, and only a handful are enacted annually. I am telling you, this was so worth the plane ticket!

The wedding was held at the War Memorial. The Memorial itself is an expansive display of military aircrafts, tanks, etc. throughout the grounds. There are also museums, however I never made it inside. The ceremony was in a sunken courtyard, below the helicopters on display (you can see them in a couple of the pics) and a number of tourists were delighted to have come on a day with so much to photograph.

This is a small percentage of the flowers sent by well-wishers. Not a bad idea if you think about it; one less thing to have to figure out and order as part of the wedding planning. hmmm, do you think this could catch on here? I was immediately taken with the pink, but really there was so much color involved that I had to love it all. Did I mention that the President sent flowers?!




This is where most of the action took place. The wedding itself involved a number of processionals, at least one of which was through the grounds and only witnessed by a Chinese tour group -- who were thrilled!


This is one of my favorite photos. There was actually another guy who was much more dressed up that did the drumming in the ceremony, but I liked this guy. The wedding was an interesting mix of formal and laid-back. There were lots of cameras -- official and unofficial -- and a surprising number of guests made their way into the reception before the ceremony ended. It was a puzzle, but I hear it is not uncommon. What is uncommon is a wedding that lasts an hour and a half.


As you can see, there were a number of "attendants" involved. All the stops were pulled out and this is what is called the "full attendant" package. I am guessing thirty or so in all. This is Soo, the handsome groom, being carried in and doing a good job of not swinging the beads on his headdress (the temptation was great).


Irene was also brought in on the shoulders of her attendants, but for the sake of upload time I have tried to limit the number of photos. Once the couple made it to the front area, a number of steps were performed (hand washing, ring exchange) To be honest we didn't really find out what was happening until we asked later, but our guesses were close, and even if we'd known what was happening it would still have been hard to see around all of the cameramen and attendants. I should also mention that there were what I can only assume were touching speeches, songs, and blessings.


The recessional was much faster than everything else to that point, and I can only assume this is because the promise of dinner loomed large. I have to say that I was a fan of the huge umbrellas. To really get the feel for it, imagine the smell of incense and some serious humidity. The day was actually the most beautiful of my visit -- good timing!


Following the ceremony was the picture taking. There were lots of pictures. Soo even had a costume change at one point, but by then we had gone to eat.


This is another one of my favorite photos. It is Irene's headdress. There was lots of *extra* hair involved, and I hear this was a pretty heavy piece to wear, even at a tenth of the original weight (!)



So here Irene and I are, with Sarah L., at one of the Sundance 2004 parties.


And here we are at the after-party at her friend's bar, Night in Paris. Adorable spot!


Not bad for two girls who both made it through absurdly serious surgeries in the interim years. Seeing Irene in Seoul, looking fantastic and happy, was really what made the trip worth it. I think we look pretty close to out old selves, and I know that for the first time in years I am feeling that way.

Only a week ago

I was is Korea. Lili and I left from LAX and flew Asiana to Seoul. In the end the best decision we made was to pay more and go direct. It is still at least a 12 hour flight, and when you only have five days, every hour counts.

We arrived in Seoul at 4:50am on Wednesday, after leaving just after midnight on Monday night (technically Tuesday). We were staying at The Hotel Shilla, which was our second best decision and a really fabulous spot to spend a few days.





This was the view from our room. In the distance, the thing that sort of looks like the Space Needle, is Seoul Tower (it is kind of like the Space Needle). You can go up in it and see the city, but it was really overcast so not the best days for views. Never fear, there was lots to see and do!

We figured out the subway. The map reminds me of train maps in Japan...colorful & insane.


We made the most of the meals we had. mmmmmmmm. We have Korean BBQ in LA, but it wasn't like this. Pork Belly...giant bacon!


There was a variety of shopping opportunities: street vendors, giant "mall" department stores, cute boutiques, artisan shops -- you name it.



Some things were more my taste than others... All of it was fun to explore.


This one is for Samantha.



All I have done since getting back to LA is work. No rest at a film fest! I'll make time to get pictures of the wedding up -- it's only taken three days to get this post up! -- but first I need to get some sleep.

next installment: dumplings!

stitch 'n' pitch '08

Ok, this is not in Korea. But we did drive through Koreatown to get to the stadium.
I didn't make it last year because I was recovering from a follow-up surgery. When I write that it makes me think it has been a really long year! So, this year, I had to go. A Manos was one of the shops supporting the event; this means they provide a bus to take us all to the game, a gift bag, and fun treats like a raffle.There was a good turn out, almost a full bus, and it was a nice excuse to go visit the shop. It is just far enough west that I don't get there very often. It is a sweet little shop and I got some fantastic chipmunk buttons (like this one).

The game was the Dodgers and the Rockies, and the Dodgers won 8-1. woohoo! There were three home runs, and I have to think it has something to do with the general indifference of most of the knitters. It was funny to look around and see all these heads looking down. Our section also suffered during the wave; after all, it is hard to do the wave when you are trying to finish a row. Here are some pics from the game.

It was a really pretty night. Cool and pleasant.
After the humidity of Seoul, it felt great.

Ann looked very cute in her blue cap. We were both working on socks.


The caps came with the Stitch 'n' Pitch ticket. nice!


This is my first sock. It is in Handmaiden's Sea Silk with Sea Cell. Love this stuff!
It looked particularly good under the lights!
Ann and I decided that the best combo is a soft serve chocolate ice cream cone and a warm pretzel. mmmmmm. It totally hit the spot. I would have taken a picture, but our hands were full :)

summertime is pandatime!

The streets of Insadong were full of all kinds of fun surprises.








This spotting totally made my day on Friday.


I am back in Los Angeles, and after keeping jet-lag at bay while in Seoul, I am now just pretty wacked out. It is shaping up to be a busy week at work (which started today), but I will get more pictures up soon. I'll also try to get some calls made one of these days soon.